


Cruising

by SlothSpaghetti



Series: Sleepless In Stark Towers [11]
Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Anxiety, Background Avengers - Freeform, Driving, F/M, Panic Attacks, Stress, college stress, horrible parents, midterm grades
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-29
Updated: 2020-10-29
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:33:45
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,135
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27262039
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SlothSpaghetti/pseuds/SlothSpaghetti
Summary: The weekend is over. Tony drives you back to campus.
Relationships: Tony Stark/OFC, Tony Stark/Reader
Series: Sleepless In Stark Towers [11]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1965925
Comments: 5
Kudos: 90





	Cruising

Steve and I exchanged phone numbers before I left on Monday. 

**_Notorious SGR-_ ** _ Confirming you got my number Queenie. _

**_You-_ ** _ yes _ 🤠

**_You-_ ** _ here is the recipe for those cookies _

Now that Bucky was done creating a melodrama out of my life, it was a lot easier being around him. I wasn't sure why it was easy to connect with the super soldiers. On one hand, it could be because Indiana might as well still be living in the 30s or 40s with the state's religious and moral values. On the other hand, it could be because the other Avengers just really scared me. 

When I was making breakfast on Sunday morning after Tony had gone to bed, Clint erupted from a vent in the ceiling, causing me to scream bloody murder, waking up everyone on that floor. Not only did I throw a bowl of fruit at him out of terror, but everyone else laughed. I assumed it was at me. I no longer trust Clint.

Later in the afternoon, when I was exiting Peter's room with my backpack of supplies to work in Tony's lab, Natasha cornered me. She demanded I tell her why Tony was following me on Instagram. I didn't know, I just posted my art and occasionally some memes on my stories. I wasn't special enough to be the one person he followed if you asked me. 

She then offered to kill my ex in a graphic and excruciatingly painful way for what he did to me. I never want to be on Natasha's bad side.

On Monday morning, when I emerged from the lab just before dawn, having fallen asleep on the couch and cuddled by Tony, Thor's booming voice filled the living area. He was watching highlights from the weekend's college football games. Apparently, he was very into sports, and well, when IU's game came on, he shouted and snarled at the TV like a wild animal. I didn't have the courage to tell him that not only was my dad the head coach, but my ex was also the rookie second-string offensive lineman they had playing this weekend. HIS EYES WERE GLOWING OKAY?! I'm scared Thor will electrocute me. 

So yeah, when I wasn't working on my projects or homework in the lab with Tony, I hung out with Peter, Steve, or Bucky. They were safe, even if they could crush me with one hand. The four of us built another Lego set, this time a model of the Apollo 11 Lunar Lander rocket. Steve and I mostly talked about art while the other two did the building and talked about space exploration and sci-fi while they worked. 

Shortly after dinner, I made the move to leave. Laundry wasn't going to do itself and I didn't want to be around everyone when I finally worked up the nerve to look at my midterm grades. I'd gotten the email late on Thursday evening and like anything stressful in my life, I was avoiding it. It had been wonderful forgetting for a weekend that I was a student and the stresses and demands that came with that. But reality was going to come knocking soon, and I preferred to be prepared for it. 

Tony offered to drive me back. 

I wasn’t going to say no to more time with him. Come on, I’m not that much of a dumb meatball.

Peter was though.

He could not have been more oblivious. Or maybe he was purposefully being a little shit. He’d seen the hickey on my neck. He must know. How else does someone get a little oval bruise on their neck?

“Oh, I’ll come with you guys then. Aunt May says she wants me to get a good night’s sleep instead of patrolling tonight,” he smiled, a duffel bag of dirty clothes hanging from his hand with his backpack draped across the opposite shoulder. 

He was already in the elevator, waving goodbye to the other Avenger’s before I could think of a good excuse to make him take the subway or web himself home. The three of us stood together in silence as we rode down to the basement level of the tower. I didn’t even know this place had a basement. 

When doors opened to reveal a long line of shiny, expensive-looking cars, I couldn’t hold in the low expletive that came out. Tony squinted at them before scanning his thumbprint next to a small case on the wall. The metal door swung open and revealed rows of keys. He plucked a set of keys from a hook then looked at us. 

“Are you going to fight over who gets to sit shotgun?” 

“What?” Peter scoffed, shuffling on his feet towards the cars.

“Yes,” I said at the same time, already clipping the chest strap on my backpack closed.

“I can feel myself going gray,” Tony muttered, clicking the unlock button for a car seven spaces away. 

I sprinted to the car, but not before casting a glance over my shoulder at Tony, who had a smirk on his face at our antics. Peter won, easily. The passenger seat already pulled forward for me to slide in the cramped back seat of the sports car when I slowed to a jog, huffing and grumbling at him for cheating. 

“We can find a spider to bite you if you want,” he suggested. 

“Jesus,” I groaned climbing in. “Don’t even think about that spooky spider shit fam.”

“You’re such a scared cat,” Click, shove, close. “What are your plans for Halloween this year?”

“Same as every year since I was told I couldn’t go trick or treating, watching The Addams Family.”

“You could at least watch a scary movie,” Peter turned around to face me. 

“You’re both coming to the party,” Tony slid smoothly into the driver’s seat. 

"What party?" I asked, buckling up and trying to pretend like I'd been to any kind of party that wasn't hosted by my dad's side of the family.

"Seriously?" Peter grinned at him like it was Christmas morning.

"Yeah, May was cool with it since it's a Saturday night."

"Can I bring MJ? We have a couple's costume."

Ever the hyperactive puppy, Peter practically bounced all the way out of Manhattan, excitedly explaining his and MJ's costume. That didn't stop me from thinking Tony drove a bit like a maniac. I couldn't decide if it was because of the sports car or because he wanted to show off, but I decided I wanted it to stop. It's not a race, we're stuck in traffic at the bridge anyway. 

"You drive like a bat outta hell," I commented as he gunned it onto the expressway. 

"This is how New Yorker's drive."

"You drive like a grandma," Peter accused me. 

"The speed limit is there for a reason," I poked his shoulder.

"So you could teach Pete to drive?" 

"I don't have a death wish, Tony," I leaned forward, resting my cheek on the shoulder of Peter’s seat. “I see why you have a driver though.”

We dropped Peter off shortly after that comment. I climbed out of the back seat, knowing Tony was getting a full view of my ass and only caring a little bit. We exchanged a quick hug and I promised to come over for dinner soon before school got way too busy. As I was climbing back in, I noticed how people stared at the car. 

“What kind of car is this?” I asked, buckling myself in as Tony peeled onto the street. 

“It’s an Audi R8,” he placed a hand on my thigh, just above my knee. “This alright?”

“People were looking at it, I don’t know cars,” I placed my hand on top of his, keeping it on my leg. 

“What kind of car do you drive?”

“I drove a 2007 Ford Ranger, but I sold it before I moved. College is expensive and I couldn’t exactly just park it outside my building,” I laughed. 

“You drove a truck?” Tony looked at me, an amused smirk on his face. 

“Eyes on the road,” I squealed. 

“JARVIS can drive the car,” his other hand moved to rest on his window. A light in the steering wheel flashed on and the car immediately slowed down to the speed limit. I also noticed it signaled when we passed another car. At least someone had road etiquette. “You okay?”

“I’ve been avoiding my midterm grades,” I confessed. “Not worried about my art classes, but I need to keep a certain GPA for my scholarship and… well yeah, I’ve been avoiding it.”

“I’m sure they are fine.”

There was a slight flicker behind his sunglasses, his eyes no longer looking at the road ahead of him or me, but what was behind the lens.

“So how are they?” I asked, nervous and amused. 

“I’m not sure what you were nervous about. You’ve got an A in everything but your calculus class, which is a very solid B. You did great, Babygirl.”

“Fuck,” I threw my head back against the seat and covered my eyes, dislodging my glasses.  _ No, no, no. Deep breathes, c'mon you stupid bitch. _

“That’s not the reaction I thought I would get for accessing your emails,” Tony looked at me now, pushing his sunglasses up his forehead. “What’s up?”

“What? No. Petey told me you did a whole search on me. It’s stupid to think you can’t just do computer magic. I watched the video from the senate hearing, which was amazing by the way. I’m just a complete fucking idiot,” My voice cracked, stress I hadn’t been willing to think about consumed me now. 

Fuck. Just fuck everything. That wasn’t good enough. God, this was awful. How was I going to explain this to my parents? I can already hear their comments in my head.  _ Are you going to be average like everyone else? What are you gonna do when you fail at art? We expect better. Why do you keep letting us down? _

I could feel Tony’s stare. Even as my eyes clouded with tears I can see the almost scared look in his wide eyes. I was being a fucking psycho again. That wasn’t okay. I needed to calm down. I can’t be like this in front of people, especially not Tony. That isn’t fair to him.

“Sorry, I’m sorry, sorry,” I took in a shaky breath, but it got caught at the back of my throat. The exhale came out just as wobbly. “I know that that seems like a good thing, but it isn’t. It has to be an A, or I can’t stay in New York.”

The car pulled over, JARVIS announcing that my heart rate had skyrocketed and that it appeared I was having a panic attack. The music stopped and the air conditioning was turned up a level. The goosebumps on my skin twitched to life as I began to shiver. 

“Look at me, Honey,” Tony pulled my hands away from my neck. When had I wrapped them there? “You need to explain what’s got you so worked up? I can’t help if you don’t tell me.”

“My parents only agreed to cosign my student loans if I got a 4.0 GPA. They check my grades. My scholarship doesn’t cover the cost of everything, so I can’t stay if I don’t have those loans,” I breathed, avoiding eye contact even as he rubbed small circles around my hands with his thumb. 

“That seems like they’re setting you up for failure, Baby.”

“No,” I shook my head, eyes squeezing shut. “I can’t fail. It’s not allowed.”

“Get out of the car, c’mon you’re switching me seats,” Tony unbuckled and removed himself from the vehicle. I did the same, just slower and more confused. 

He was already at the passenger door when I popped it open. I pulled myself out of the vehicle. I wasn’t going to fail at the one thing he asked me to do. I was going to force myself from the car even if it was the last thing I felt capable of doing. Every part of me was shaking. There was nothing I could do to force down the tears, I knew that, but that didn’t mean I wasn’t going to try and stop them. 

I was ashamed. Not only because I was crying in front of Tony, again, like a stupid baby, but because of just how dumb he must think I am. I couldn’t even pass basic calculus, and I had to take another math class next semester. He must have thought I was pathetic. 

Tony wrapped his arms around me, forcing my head on his shoulder. I clung to him, my hands aching in the cold October air. The zipper of his jacket dug into the front of my sweatshirt. I kept saying sorry as more tears fell down my face. He rubbed my back. A soothing gesture that felt so foreign to me. Neither of my parents were affectionate, saying that was just the way they were raised. 

“You sure you wanna deal with a fucking hot mess like me?” I hiccuped. 

“You’ve yet to see me on a bad day, Sweetheart. This is nothing,” he assured me, placing both hands on my face. Warm palms guarded me for the autumn wind and wiped away the last stray tears. He brought my forehead to his lips, resting them there for a few moments before he pulled away. There was a tender, almost sad, look in his eyes, but that was quickly replaced with a Tony Stark™ smirk. 

“Now hop to it, we are going for a drive.”

I started driving us south, with no destination in mind. The Audi handled a hell of a lot different than the truck. It took a good amount of my concentration to control it and focus on the absolutely insane drivers of New York. We sat in silence, not even the radio on. The street lamps and car lights blinded me as we passed them. Tony was still wearing his sunglasses. When I merged us onto a highway, I relaxed. My arms fell from the 10 and 2 position and one hand rested on the base of the steering wheel, while the other rested on the gear shift. 

“You are an excellent driver, Sweetheart.”

Well, that went straight to my head. Heat rose on my cheeks and a small laugh rumbled through me. 

“I used to drive everywhere,” I sighed. Highway signs flashed a series of streets, restaurants, and tourist hot spots. Increasing the speed gradually, merging into the farthest left lane, and finally letting loose on the gas. “There isn’t much to do where I am from, and when my parents got to be too much, this is what I used to do.”

“Drag race down empty highways?”

“It ain’t racin’ if you’re alone,” I let my drawl slip, peering over at Tony. 

“It’s like you’re a totally different person,” his hushed, dramatic tone was lessened by the laugh that followed. 

“Nah, ya get made fun of enough for sounded slow and dumb, you change it,” I murmured, tightening my accent and slowing back down and merging into the right lane. Where I was supposed to be.

“Isn’t your mom from New York?”

“Yeah, but I sound just like my dad,” my phone rattled in the cupholder. “Speak of the devil. Is it that late already? Can you put in the car speaker?”

“You want JARVIS in your phone?” He countered. 

“I thought he would be already,” I glanced at Tony, genuinely a bit surprised and mostly just happy he hadn’t done what he did to Peter to me. There were things that I would rather explain in person to him. 

JARVIS pushed the call to the car speakers, the small screen in the dash lighting up with my dad’s contact information. A picture of him, decked out in his IU gear and headphones around his neck appeared in the center of it. 

“Hey Fabio, how are you?” Tony looked at me and mouthed ‘Fabio’ to me.

“You watch your boyfriend play yesterday?” His slow, mumbled drawl that matched mine filled the car. 

“I told you we broke up last week Dad,” I frowned, taking an exit off the highway. I couldn’t look at Tony.

“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” I could just picture him rolling his eyes. “You young people break up all the time. He’s just really torn up about it. Can’t focus on school, he nearly failed all his midterms, the kids a complete mess.”

Of course, he almost failed. I had stopped 'helping' him on his papers and homework the moment we broke up. Any of his work that I still had on my computer I deleted. I pulled us into a near-empty parking lot. Tony unbuckled his seat belt and leaned further back, seemingly content to just listen.

“So bench his ass then Dad, I don’t care. We broke up.” This was the last thing I wanted to talk about. 

“Watch your mouth young lady,” he enunciated as his voice dripped with venom.

Tony looked at me, raising his eyebrows. I couldn’t decide what was more embarrassing, the fact that I flinched or that he scolded me. 

“Am I on speakerphone?” He asked.  _ Abort, abort, abort. _

“Look Dad, just like last week, if you don’t wanna talk about something else, hang up the phone.” 

“Pete’s sake, you’re just like Mother,” he sounded annoyed and he was taking it out on me. 

“You know I don’t like it when you say that,” I softened my voice but gripped the steering wheel. 

“And you didn’t answer my question.”

“Yes, you’re on speakerphone.”

“So are you doing your art stuff?” 

“No,” that was all I was gonna tell him. 

“That’s a first, then what are you doing?” He asked. “Mother says hello, hopes you’re enjoying your new church.”

Tony snorted. Obviously, I wasn’t going to church. I hated church, but they didn't' need to know that. 

“Who’s that? If you’re with someone you shouldn’t answer the phone. We raised you better,” he scolded again. 

“It’s fine, he’s fine with it. Everyones fine,” I rushed.

“Smooth,” Tony whispered. 

“He?” My father bellowed. “Where is this boy? Put me on video.”

“In a car, Dad, can’t put you on video. Oh no, we are going under a tunnel soon, byeeeee.” I scrambled for my phone and ended the call. 

“You handled that horribly,” Tony laughed. “I’m not gonna lie, it was like watching an on fire dumpster.”

“You know what, next week when he calls me, you can answer the phone. Have all the fun with that you want. I will sit and watch you struggle.” I folded my arms together and stared at him. 

“It’s a date, Babygirl.”


End file.
